I listened to a hell of a lot of music in 2022, but very little of it was “album” focused. Still, a handful of albums stood out and marked artists I wanted to spend more time with. I’ve avoided complete rankings, but have grouped the albums in tiers. All of these albums are, in my view, fantastic, but the top tiers just won my heart a little more completely.
I was tempted to make a separate list for jazz, but i don’t have it in me–neither the energy nor the expertise. I’ll just namecheck Melissa Aldana, Mary Halvorsen (who should probably have been on the below list), The Matthew Shipp Trio (probably the best) and Sun-Mi Hong.
“Classical” got less play this year for me this year, but I did love The Mysterious Motet Book album by Siglo de Oro, Caroline Shaw’s Evergreen, and Caroline Widmen’s L’Aurore.
Tier One
Cate LeBon–Pompeii
Welsch guitarist and songwriter Cate LeBon might make a bad album one day, but I wouldn’t bet on it. I jumped on the bandwagon with Mug Museum, but I think Pompeii might top it. She twists the weird into melody in a way that challenges while still giving the mind a place to land. I spend a fair amount of time complaining about saxophones, but the sax underpins most of the songs here and, well, it’s miraculous.
Aldous Harding–Warm Chris
Aldous Harding’s ability to write a song is only matched by her ability to vocally shapeshift in bringing it alive. Here live show was an odd experience–Harding was deeply strange but all the more entrancing for it. Unless she quits music to commit herself to topiary gardening, this New Zealand native will be one of our best songwriters for decades to come.
Lucretia Dalt–¡Ay!
Lucretia Dalt has been on a bit of a roll recently. This year alone she released three albums–two excellent soundtracks (The Baby, The Seed) and a solo masterpiece. While this Columbian artist is often classified as “experimental,” that label makes her sound alienating and intentionally weird. But she’s much more compelling than most on the experimental side of things. Think, perhaps, a cross between Bjork and Tom Waits, but in Spanish? Ok, maybe that does sound odd.
Angel Olsen–Big Time
While Angel Olsen can’t be said to be inventing new styles or changing the map of music, the power of her voice and the intimacy of her songwriting make her an essential artist. There are certainly echoes of Mazzy Star, old country, Roy Orbison, and others here. Maybe she’s our queer Loretta Lynne. She should be a household name.
Kikagaku Moyo–Kumoyo Island
I hate it when I discover a band just as they are breaking up. I hate it a bit more when I find out that they are playing blocks from my house just after the shows have sold out. Kikagaku Moyo is a Japanese psychedelic band that has apparently gone from barely knowing their instruments to a group that can weave hypnotic tapestries with symphonic precision.
Tier 2
Cocanha–Puput
Cocanha sings in the engangered language of Occitan, mostly to percussive claps and stomps. Yes, if I read that description I too would think this was perversely obscure and too precious for words. But wait and listen. They conjure playground chants and ritual dances, set in a folkloric realm. And, surprisingly, it can really groove.
Note: this apparently came out in 2020. I found it this year and I want more people to hear it, so who cares.
Bill Callahan–Ytilaer
It’s taken me a while to fall for Bill Callahan. I was never into Smog, despite people telling me I should be, but each album I listened to (and this is his 23rd) seemed to hypnotise me further. Though his voice is much better, Callahan’s closest comparison for me is probably Dylan in that his lyrics consist of curveballs that somehow always wend their way into the strike zone. In this album Callahan is a bit more…positive, comforting…than normal, and that’s what I needed in 2022. Time to revisit the backcatalogue.
Big Thief–Dragon New Warm Mountain I Believe In You
If you set Radiohead aside, Big Thief is the best band going. Dragon New Warm Mountain is a huge double album that shows off the band’s folksier side. It’s maybe bordering on too much so for me–it’s rare that I can find a place for a jaw harp–but Adrienne Lenker’s lyrics and fragile voice win me over.
The Smile–A Light for Attracting Attention
Anytime any of the Radiohead gang produced anything the bar is set so high that anything not world-busting can be dismissed. The Smile is Johnny Greenwood and Thom Yorke of Radiohead, plus drummer Tom Skinner who has worked with Sons of Kemet and has an excellent album of his own. While not entirely eschewing the tendencey to orchestrate their sound, Greenwood and York let loose a little more with the Smile and return to a more guitar driven sound. For those of us who still worship OK, A Light hits a sweet spot.
Avalance Kaito–Avalance Kaito
According to their bandcamp page, Avalance Kaito is “A Burkinabe urban griot (vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Kaito Winse) meets a Brussels noise punk duo.” Admittedly, this sounds like a cross-cultural experiment where the novelty beats the musical value. But in my view it works. Kaito Winse’s gravelly shouts feel, well, punk, and the band’s rythmic grinding chuggs underneath and propels us into uncharted territory.
Tier 3
Perennial–In the Midnight Hour
It’s good to hear kids making noise. Perennial is New England trio that combines electro-punk, post-punk, and just energetic rock. There’s not much out there about them, but with any luck there will be. There’s a little bit of the loud quiet loud formula, which as a 90s boy I’m a sucker for, and there’s male/female vocal tradeoffs, which adds extra dimension to the sound. It’s a splendid debut.
Sprints–A Modern Job EP
Sprints are a Dublin punk(ish) band led by singer Karla Chubb, whose political–but not too self-serious–lyrics separate the band from the pack. They have a raw sound with aggressive bass and drums, with a guitar overlay that keeps hooks in the mix. Though they sound a bit more guitarsy, there’s some similarities to (the excellent) Porridge Radio. Looking forward to more from these guys.
Anterloper–Pink Dolphins
It’s hard to overstate the loss of jaime branch. From her purer jazz stuff–which was always at least a little influenced by a rock sensibility–to this album with Anterloper, her work is fresh, energetic, and timely. This album, which involves collaborations with fellow Chicago scenesters Jason Nazary, Jeff Parker and Chad Tayler, shows the mixture of improvisation and organization that she mastered. Is it jazz? Who cares.
Horse Lords–Comradely Objects
Cross Polvo with their idiosyncratic tunings with Don Caballero and you might get something like Horselords: a grooving, rythmic perfect mess. More evidence that Baltimore isn’t just for dreampop.
Moor Mother–Jazz Codes
Yes, Camae Ayewa–the Philadelphia based genius who is Moor Mother–is everywhere. Her own projects include those hip-hop inflected under her own name, those of a more jazzy sort with Irreversible Entanglements, slightly more electronic with 700 Bliss. And then there are guest spots galore. Ever since her debut, Fetish Bones, it’s been clear she’s one of those rare talents whose innovation and intelligence gives the midas touch. Jazz Codes is a sort of ode to jazz musicians gone by, but sounds like nothing else. Excellent guest spots by Melanie Charles and others.
Tier 4
Wet Leg–Wet Leg
Maybe the most talked about band of the past year, Wet Leg gave many of us the levity we needed. After the Isle of Wight duo’s single Chaise Lounge made every playlist of the previous year, it wasn’t obvious there was enough substance there to fill an album. Turns out, there was, and just about every song is a little pop gem. I have no idea whether these two will be around in ten years, but they’re definitely having a cool moment.
Alvvays–Blue Rev
I admit, after the indie-pop perfection of their debut album in 2014, Alvvays fell off my radar. Judging by Blue Rev, that was a mistake. While they aren’t reinventing the wheel–they owe to bands like Lush, The Sundays and many others–their music is too compelling to relegate to throwback status. Molly Rankin’s voice dances the melodies over distorted guitars, and then you smile.
Marlowe–Marlowe 3
I missed Marlow 1 and 2, but this album–by the duo L’Orange and Solemn Brigham–is one of the best rap/hip-hop albums I heard this year. (Never could penetrate the Kendrick–moments of brilliance, but a little hard to listen to on the whole. The Pusha T was excellent, but I just didn’t listen to it as much as the Marlowe.) The combination of Brigham’s words and flow with L’Orange’s samples and beats makes for a catchy and compelling mix. If you like Danny Brown, which you should, this is worth checking out.
Afrorack–Afrorack
Afrorack refers to Brian Bamanya, a Ugandan musician and electronics tinkerer, to his homemade modular synth, and to this album which is one of the most interesting electronic offerings I heard this year. Reviews mention his building on indigenous polyrythms, but I can’t speak to that. It sounds like a drum machine mated with a 1990s modem. This is what our AI overlords will listen to when they crank up the oldies.
Flock–Flock
Flock is an experimental/improvisational jazz-ish group from London. If that sounds scary, take a listen. It’s far from the chaotic Brotzmann style jazz that you might think of. Using a wide range of instruments, from flutes and sax to Fender Rhodes and vibraphone, these five musicians create tapestries that probably couldn’t have been designed, but hang together anyway.